Warts and verrucas are the result of infections of the epithelia of the skin and mucous membranes by human papillomavirus and cytomegalovirus, and can be considered as neoplasms. These infections can be associated with a wide variety of benign and malignant tumours, and therefore require suitable treatment. Warts, depending on the type of infecting virus, are usually present in all parts of the body, on the hands and face, and especially in the anogenital region. Anogenital warts usually invade the skin and the proximal mucosa. In circumcised men and male homosexuals, the glans and urethral meatus are also involved. In women, these warts can degenerate to fibroepitheliomas and a variety of benign or malignant mucocutaneous tumours. In many cases the complications of warts include severe itching, occasional bleeding, and often bacterial and fungal infections. Another widespread form of warts affects elderly people; these warts are located on the face, neck and chest, causing an unsightly appearance and functional impairment.
Patients who suffer from warts and verrucas often develop anxiety and depression. The current treatments for this disorder, which are not always completely effective, involve the use of viral antimetabolites such as 5-fluorouracyl, or products like podophyllotoxin and interferon, applied topically and systemically, with mediocre results. A tea extract for the treatment of warts and verrucas, requiring topical application for months, was recently approved in the United States of America. The first-line treatment for external warts and verrucas is still surgical, involving ablation of the removable mass and repetition of the treatment several times to ensure thorough eradication. Several months is an unacceptably long time to eradicate the disease, bearing in mind how contagious it is.
The first-line treatment for psoriatic plaques generally consists of using products with a keratolytic and emollient action which, however, do not cure the problem. The use of corticosteroids is not generally recommended because of their known side effects.
One of the plants which has been most widely studied is Sanguinaria canadensis, already used by native Americans to treat tumours and skin sores. Numerous alkaloids, such as sanguinarine, chelerythrine, chelidonine and other minor ones, which are also common in other Papaveraceae, have been isolated from this plant, especially its roots.
All these plants have been studied since the beginning of this century in view of their use as medicinal plants in folk medicine. Yellow latex of Chelidonium majus was used in the past to treat warts, verrucas and benign skin tumours; however, its use has long been discontinued because of significant tolerability problems. The most widespread use of these alkaloids, especially chelidonine, was to treat infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, or protozoa such as leishmaniasis and malaria; however, their systemic toxicity prevented their long-term use.
The use of benzophenanthridine alkaloids or salts thereof for the preparation of medicaments for the treatment of tumours is disclosed in Italian patent application no. MI2008A284, filed on 20 Feb. 2008 by the same Applicant. The use of benzophenanthridine alkaloids chosen from sanguinarine, chelerythrine or chelidonine is disclosed in particular.
Italian patent application no. MI2008A38, filed on 11 Jan. 2008 by the same Applicant, describes formulations containing sanguinarine or chelerythrine, or their salts or extracts containing them, for the treatment and prevention of mucositis, especially mucositis induced by chemotherapy, radiotherapy or immunosuppressant treatment.